Bishop Ahr not ready to relinquish GMC Blue title

GREATER MIDDLESEX CONFERENCE – BLUE DIVISION PREVIEW

This is the seventh of 10 division previews running on the blog leading up to opening day tomorrow, and the fine one today. After featuring the big schools yesterday, we’ve switched gears to some of the state’s smallest. Check back tomorrow for the final round, as we check out the GMC White, the UCC Mountain and the Skyland Raritan divisions …

Three Burning Questions

Bishop Ahr's Pat Widdoss, center, puts up a shot over Spotswood's Allan Kuiper, right, during the teams' second meeting last year. Spotswood won the game, but the Trojans ultimately outlasted the Chargers for a Blue Division title. (Mark R. Sullivan/Chief Photographer)

1. Why won’t Bishop Ahr win its third straight Blue Division crown? Your guesses are as good as mine. The Trojans lose a few key pieces, but all-division forward Pat Widdoss returns along with a talented, athletic group that heads into the season as the favorite. More importantly, it’s not entirely clear which team is best suited to challenge them. Spotswood lost the first six guys from its rotation after nearly grabbing a share of the crown last year, and the field is muddled in the middle when it comes to everyone else. Hopefully we’ll have a clearer picture by January.2. What will Carteret bring to the table? The Ramblers come in while South River drops out, and thanks to graduation, Carteret may end up resembling the 2009-10 Rams a bit. They don’t have the size they had when they made a run to the sectional semifinals, but they’ll be athletic and they’ll get after people. That said, the odds are that, despite the similarities, the Ramblers will avoid the last-place finish.3. Can the division send another team to the GMCT semis? Spotswood made the run last year, upending East Brunswick in the quarters and hanging with St. Joseph until the final minutes. It was a huge win for the little guys, and whether or not it can be replicated, the division will have its change for more in the regular season. Bishop Ahr plays Colonia and McCarrick; Carteret has South Brunswick and Old Bridge back-to-back; JFK plays township rivals Colonia and Woodbridge; Metuchen faces Woodbridge and J.P. Stevens; Middlesex plays at South Plainfield.

Opening Day Schedule

J.F. Kennedy's, Daishon Robinson, left and A.J. Pichalski, right, block a pass by North Hunterdon's Marc Snider, in the Gene Haley Tournament final at Kennedy High School last year. (Augusto F. Menezes/Staff Photographer)

CARTERET

Coach: Herman White, second season
Last season: 12-12
Letterwinners: 3 returning, 9 lost
Roster: Alejandro Rodriguez (Sr. G, 5-10); Avery Carter (Jr. F, 6-2); Devon Byrd (Sr. G, 6-3); Joey Nigro (Jr. G, 5-7); Tanveer Dosanjh (Jr. F, 6-0); Kevin Van Dyke (Jr. F, 6-2); Juwan Coston (Jr. G, 5-10); Lamont Crews (Sr. F, 6-3); Justin Mendez (So. G, 5-10).
Outlook: The Ramblers put together a spirited run to the North 2 Group III semifinals to cap White’s first season, but after losing nine seniors, it’ll be tough to carry that momentum into the new year. The senior class is smaller than it has been, but led by Rodriguez and Byrd, who saw significant action in those state tournament games, it’s still the backbone of the team, and White likes what they bring to the table. Carter is the top returning scorer and rebounder, and leads a strong junior class, many of whom played on a JV team that reached last winter’s GMC semifinals. The Ramblers will be a little smaller this year, but even if there are some early growing pains, the hope is that once the calendar turns to 2011, there won’t be much dropoff as they join the Blue Division.

HIGHLAND PARK

Coach: Derek Nobles, fifth seasonLast season: 7-15Roster: Not availableOutlook: The Owls were the only team in the division to not reach double-digit wins, and will need a new point guard this time around following the graduation of David Webb. The defense, which was third-worst in the GMC in points-per-game allowed last year, must improve. If you want a snapshot of where that unit would like to be, look no further than a season-opening two-game road swing to Metuchen and Middlesex. Those two were the top defensive clubs in the division last winter, and the two games will serve as a good barometer to whether or not the Owls will make many ripples in the Blue this year.

J.F. KENNEDY

Coach: Chris Banos, fourth season
Last season: 12-12
Letterwinners: 7 returning, 3 lostRoster: Daishon Robinson (Sr. G, 5-11); A.J. Pichalski (Sr. F, 6-4); Jordan Toczynski (Sr. G, 5-7); A.J. Williams (Sr. G, 5-5); Nick Spoganetz (Sr. F, 6-0); Josh Kamenas (Jr. C, 6-5); Shabas Clarke (Jr. F, 6-1); J.C. Echavarria (Sr. F, 5-11); Henry Basora (Sr. G, 5-10); Robert Flynn (Sr. F, 6-0); Stephen Alvarez (Jr. G, 6-1); Kurt Lorentzen (Jr. G, 5-10); Zach Buchholz (So. G, 5-9).
Outlook: The Mustangs lost two big names to graduation, but just about everyone else is back for a team that tripled its win total from two years ago. Joe Marciano and Rasheed Howard at their combined 34 points-per-game have departed, but Robinson and Pichalski are veterans who showed the potential last year to pick up that scoring mantle. Robinson quietly Kennedy a third double-digit scorer with 10.2 ppg last winter, while Pichalski averaged 7.5 points and 6.7 rebounds per-game. If both step up into the spotlight, the rest of the team should follow. All in all there are eight seniors on this team, twice as many as the past two seasons combined, so if there was ever a year for Banos’ bunch to make a move within the Blue Division for the Mustangs, this is it.

METUCHEN

Coach: Rich Stoner, seventh seasonLast season: 15-7
Letterwinners: 5 returning, 6 lost
Roster: Mike Crusco (Sr. G, 6-1); Elijah Sellers (Sr. G, 5-8); Troy Mallory (Sr. G, 6-1); Kauri Quals (Jr. F, 6-3); Tim Redshaw (Jr. F, 6-2); Steven Switzer (Sr. G, 6-0); Ryan Salmon (Sr. F, 6-2); Stephen Fortuna (Jr. F, 6-3); Ryan O’Neill (So. G, 5-8); Brian Eustace (Fr. G, 5-10).
Outlook: There will be experience on the floor for the Bulldogs, but they’ll be more guard-oriented for the first time in a while without an athletic wing to fill graduated Evan Carberry’s role. Quals has logged significant minutes in his first two seasons, and might help bridge that gap, but a lot of the leadership and the scoring load will pass to guards Crusco and Sellers. Crusco is the team’s top returning scorer, and an all-Blue Division pick last year, while Sellers will need to do more scoring after being a distributor last year. Stoner has a solid incoming group, with soccer standouts Switzer and O’Neill looking good in the preseason. The hope is to contend for a division title, as usual, and if the big men behind Quals get into the swing of things, that will come a lot easier.

MIDDLESEX

Coach: Brian Feath, sixth seasonLast season: 17-7
Letterwinners: 6 returning, 5 lost
Roster: John Santoro (Sr. G, 5-11); Chris Winkleman (Sr. G, 5-11); David Schenck (Sr. F, 6-1); Sean Paul (Sr. G, 5-11); Ray Lang (Sr. G, 5-11); Chris Fuscoletti (Jr. G, 5-11); Tommy Helmsetter (So. F, 6-1); Connor Bogus (So. F, 6-1); Al-Tarik Rushing (So. F, 6-0); Nick Hionis (Jr. G, 5-10); Blake Jackson (So. G, 5-11).Outlook: The Blue Jays came along pretty quickly in what could have easily been a rebuilding season last year, and now with two starters and three other contributors all returning, they could spearhead the chase to catch Bishop Ahr atop the division Santoro (10 ppg) is the top returning scorer for Middlesex, and he’ll team with Winkleman to give the Jays a veteran backcourt that could send the senior class out as the winningest in school history. They aren’t as big inside as they’ve been in recent years, with Schenck the only returning post player after coming off the bench as a junior. Helmsetter and Rushing will both see plenty of action as they make their varsity debuts.

SPOTSWOOD

Coach: Steve Mate, 16th season
Last season: 19-6
Letterwinners: 2 returning, 7 lost
Roster: Corey Brown (So. G, 6-1); Dalonte Grant (So. G, 6-1); Jamal Lewis (So. F, 6-2); Ike Ejikeme (Jr. C, 6-4); Thomas Soulias (Jr., 6-2); Kevin Behan (Sr., 5-11); Steve Manahan (Sr., 6-3); Garret Walters (Sr., 6-1); Kevin Fox (Fr. G, 6-0); Nicholas Marinelli (Fr. F, 6-0); Naurimas Zumida (Jr. G, 6-2); Dan Aquino (Sr. F, 6-2); Art Campbell (G, 5-11); Shawn Weeks (G, 5-11).Outlook: Following a stellar two-year run which featured 39 wins, two 1,000-point scorers and a trip to the GMC Tournament semifinals, it’s back to square one for the Chargers, who graduate all five starters and their sixth man. Soulias and Walters did see limited varsity minutes, but they’re the only ones. The saving grace for Spotswood is that nobody really will know what to expect out of the group, which is more balanced among the different class years. Though their most valuable players last year were on the perimeter, watch for either Ejikeme or Manahan as they try and fill the void in the middle left by Allan Kuiper, since Spotswood always seems to be able to find more gritty guards. If the team can get to double-digit victories this year, the 10th would be the 200th for head coach Mate with the Chargers.

About Mike New

Mike New is former writer at the Home News Tribune, having covered Middlesex County softball in 2009 and 2010. A 2008 graduate of Rutgers University, he served as sports editor and managing editor of The Daily Targum. Now an assistant in the publishing world, he has returned to In the Paint and will be a weekly contributor on Sundays.

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Joe MartinoJoe Martino has covered Central Jersey news and sports for the Courier News and Home News Tribune since 2009. Currently, he’s an innovative member of the MyCentralJersey.com online news team. He’s lived in Bridgewater his entire life and is a graduate of Ramapo College.E-mail Joe

Mike BeckerMike Becker is a graduate of Rutgers University. He has been working at the Home News Tribune since the spring of 2011. During his time at Rutgers, he covered the school's football, and both the men's and women's basketball teams, for WRSU-FM.E-mail Mike